Correcting systematic effects in a large set of photometric light curves

We suggest a new algorithm to remove systematic effects in a large set of light curves obtained by a photometric survey. The algorithm can remove systematic effects, such as those associated with atmospheric extinction, detector efficiency, or point spread function changes over the detector. The algorithm works without any prior knowledge of the effects, as long as they linearly appear in many stars of the sample. The approach, which was originally developed to remove atmospheric extinction effects, is based on a lower rank approximation of matrices, an approach which has already been suggested and used in chemometrics, for example. The proposed algorithm is especially useful in cases where the uncertainties of the measurements are unequal. For equal uncertainties, the algorithm reduces to the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) algorithm. We present a simulation to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm and we point out its potential, in the search for transit candidates in particular.     

Biological and granulometric controls on sedimentary organic matter of an intertidal mudflat

A variety of measures of organic matter concentration and quality were made on samples collected from the top few mm of intertidal mudflat sediment over the course of a year, in order to assess the relative importance of biological and sedimentological influences on sedimentary organic matter. Winter and summer were times of relatively fine-grained sediment accumulation, caused by biological deposition or stabilization processes and resulting in higher organic matter concentrations. Stable carbon isotope and Br:C ratios indicated a planktonic source of bulk organic matter. Ratios of organic carbon to specific surface area of the sediments were consistent with an organic monolayer coverage of sediment grains. Correction for changing grain size during the year showed no change in the organic concentration per unit surface area, in spite of organic matter inputs by in situ primary production, buildup of heterotroph biomass and mucus coatings, and biodeposition of organic-rich seston. There were also no indications of changes in bulk organic quality, measured as hydrolyzable carbohydrates and amino acids, in response to these biological processes. It is concluded that biological processes on a seasonal time scale affect the bulk organic matter of these sediments via a modulation of grain size rather than creation or decay of organic matter.     

Bond rolling resistance and its effect on yielding of bonded granulates by DEM analyses

A discrete element modelling of bonded granulates and investigation on the bond effect on their behaviour are very important to geomechanics. This paper presents a two‐dimensional (2‐D) discrete element theory for bonded granulates with bond rolling resistance and provides a numerical investigation into the effect of bond rolling resistance on the yielding of bonded granulates. The model consists of mechanical contact models and equations governing the motion of bonded particles. The key point of the theory is that the assumption in the original bond contact model previously proposed by the authors (55th CSCE‐ASCE Conference, Hamilton, Ont., Canada, 2002; 313–320; J. Eng. Mech. (ASCE) 2005; 131 (11):1209–1213) that bonded particles are in contact at discrete points, is here replaced by a more reliable assumption that bonded particles are in contact over a width. By making the idealization that the bond contact width is continuously distributed with the normal/tangential basic elements (BE) (each BE is composed of spring, dashpot, bond, slider or divider), we establish a bond rolling contact model together with bond normal/tangential contact models, and also relate the governing equations to local equilibrium. Only one physical parameter β needs to be introduced in the theory in comparison to the original bond discrete element model. The model has been implemented into a 2‐D distinct element method code, NS2D. Using the NS2D, a total of 86 1‐D, constant stress ratio, and biaxial compressions tests have been carried out on the bonded granular samples of different densities, bonding strengths and rolling resistances. The numerical results show that: (i) the new theory predicts a larger internal friction angle, a larger yielding stress, more brittle behaviour and larger final broken contact ratio than the original bond model; (ii) the yielding stress increases nonlinearly with the increasing value of β, and (iii) the first‐yield curve (initiation of bond breakage), which define a zone of none bond breakage and which shape and size are affected by the material density, is amplified by the bond rolling resistance in analogous to that predicted by the original bond model. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Parameters of the intense X-ray and gamma-ray radiation from the solar flare of May 20, 2002, as observed from the Coronas-F spacecraft

We consider temporal, spectral, and polarization parameters of the hard X-ray and gamma-ray radiation observed during the solar flare of May 20, 2002, in the course of experiments with the SONG and SPR-N instruments onboard the Coronas-F spacecraft. This flare is one of the most intense gamma-ray events among all of the bursts of solar hard electromagnetic radiation detected since the beginning of the Coronas-F operation (since July 31, 2001) and one of the few gamma-ray events observed during solar cycle 23. A simultaneous analysis of the Coronas-F and GOES data on solar thermal X-ray radiation suggests that, apart from heating due to currents of matter in the the flare region, impulsive heating due to the injection of energetic electrons took place during the near-limb flare S21E65 of May 20, 2002. These electrons produced intense hard X-ray and gamma-ray radiation. The spectrum of this radiation extends up to energies ≥7 MeV. Intense gamma-ray lines are virtually unobservable against the background of the nonthermal continuum. The polarization of the hard X-ray (20–100 keV) radiation was estimated to be ≤15–20%. No significant increase in the flux of energetic protons from the flare under consideration was found. At the same time, according to ACE data, the fluxes of energetic electrons in interplanetary space increased shortly (～25 min) after the flare.     

A multi‐level parallelized substructuring‐frontal solution for coupled thermo/hydro/mechanical problems in unsaturated soil

This paper proposes a multi‐level parallelized substructuring–frontal combined algorithm for the analysis of the problem of thermo/hydraulic/mechanical behaviour of unsaturated soil. Temperature, displacement, pore water pressure and pore air pressure are treated as the primary variables in a non‐linear analysis. Details are given firstly of the substructuring–frontal combined approach. The incorporation of the algorithm in a multi‐level parallel strategy is then discussed. The parallel processing can thus be carried out at different substructural levels. The method thus developed impacts, in a positive way, on both computer storage requirement and execution time. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.